Small rash on head of penis

[Jimmybob356]

I noticed about 3 days ago the the head of my penis seemed to be inflamed (for lack of a better word). There is a small half-inch section in the middle that is red and has bumps on the edges of the red area. The bumps are not filled with any types of liquid and are barely noticeable unless inspected closely. They look exactly like goosebumps. The size of the inflamed area has decreased a little in the past two days. There has been no discomfort at all. No itching, burning, or sensation of any kind. It has not spread to any other part of my body and is only located on the section of the penis head. I'm divorced and recently began having my first sexual relationship since my divorce and am using condoms for the first time in over 5 years. I also work outside and have a job where I sweat a lot. I haven't been able to find an STD that presents with the symptoms I described, but I am worried nonetheless. Is this just minor irritation brought on by condoms/sweat, etc? Or could this be something more serious?

[gracefromHHP]

just make sure you had full std testing. typically you only get tested for 2-3 std's when you ask for testing. keep that in mind when discussing std's with partners too.

if you were negative for hsv1 and hsv2 prior to this and had contracted genital herpes, you'd have very painful and obvious symptoms that you wouldn't have to wonder if they were herpes related or not - you'd know.

[Jimmybob356]

Thanks Grace. I was tested before going back into the dating pool and had no infections. One follow up question. How long could I expect the irritation to last before I need to become more concerned?

[gracefromHHP]

this doesn't sound like herpes going on. sounds more like irritation at this point.

since you are back in the dating pool again, did you pursue full std testing that included herpes igg blood testing prior to doing so?  are you talking to your partners about their std testing too?

grace